Forgive and Forget.~
by Tstarr
Summary: The gang's in high school! Ashley A. "turns" good, but after the tragic death of a student at school, will she be blamed?


~.Forgive and Forget.~  
  
Note: Okay, this is my second "Recess" fic and one of my many fics posted at fanfiction.net. Hope you like, read and review. Okay, thanx!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any "Recess" characters, etc. Read on!  
  
  
  
August 25  
  
Dear Diary,  
  
School is starting soon on September 10th. I'm excited to be in high school. I'll be a freshman at Thaddeus T. High. What about my friends? Well, Ashley B. is being sent to Paris for high school and Ashley T. is being sent to Japan. Ashley Q. is also gone. She moved to Australia last year. What am I going to do now? Sure I'll find new friends, but now the only Ashley I have left is.Ashley Spinelli. I shudder to think about hanging out with her. But it seems that Spinelli and her whole gang will be the only ones I'll know at Thaddeus T. High. More later.  
  
-Ashley Armbrewster  
  
  
  
August 27  
  
Stupid Ashley A.! Of all the people in the world, she is the girl that is going to be in the same high school for 4 whole years with TJ, Gretch, Vince, Mikey, Gus, and me. Aargh, I hate her! Up side: All of her minions won't be with her to follow her around! Okay, I know in a diary I'm supposed to write all this mushy stuff but right now in my life, there is no mushy stuff. TJ and I.well, we were a couple in junior high, but it's high school now. Something might have changed.Who knows. I'll write soon. Bye.  
  
-Ashley Spinelli  
  
  
  
August 29  
  
Hey Journal,  
  
I never thought I'd see the day. I'm going to high school! Woo-hoo! Everything is going to be perfect-except for the fact that Ashley A. will be with us. It's not that I don't like her; its just.she's different. If she starts hanging out with us, I'm afraid I'll fall in love with her.  
  
-Vince LeSalle  
  
  
  
"Man, our first day in high school!" TJ exclaimed. "Thaddeus T. High- here we come!" TJ, Spinelli, Gretchen, Vince, Gus, and Mikey had all agreed to meet in front of TJ's house to walk to school together.  
  
"Then what are we waiting for?" Spinelli asked. "Let's go!" They all started walking until Becky called out to them.  
  
"Where do you think you guys are going?" she asked. As TJ's older sister, Becky was supposed to take them to school. "Look, if you guys want to walk-fine. But I go to Thaddeus T. too. I might as well take you guys."  
  
"But Becky, the 6 of us and you is 7 people," said Gretchen. "All 7 of us couldn't possible fit in your car."  
  
Becky scowled at braniac Gretchen Grundler. "Oh, yeah. Well, Thaddeus T. is kind of far so if you guys are up to walking, like, a really long way, kudos to you. See ya." Becky turned and hopped into her black Jetta and zoomed away.  
  
"Kudos?" Gus asked.  
  
"She's old fashioned," TJ responded. "But she's right. How are we going to get to school?"  
  
As if to answer his question, a limousine pulled up to the sidewalk where the 6 friends were. The window rolled down and TJ walked up to it. Inside was the last person he'd expect to see stop them: Ashley Armbrewster.  
  
"Do you guys need a ride? It's, like, a long way," she said.  
  
"Whoa, is the powder puff being nice to us?" Spinelli muttered to Gretchen.  
  
"Listen," Ashley A. began. "I know I hadn't been the nicest person to you guys, but I really want that to change. Us 7 are the only ones that went to 3rd Street and Spirow T. Agnew." Her voice suddenly turned sad and the gang almost felt sorry for her. "I don't have anyone," she said.  
  
Vince walked up to the window and smiled. "So you asked if we wanted a ride?"  
  
Ashley A.'s face brightened. "I'll take it as a yes?"  
  
"You bet."  
  
The 7 "friends" walked down the hall looking for their lockers.  
  
"Okay, what are your numbers?" Vince asked.  
  
TJ: "892."  
  
Spinelli: "898."  
  
Gretchen: "912."  
  
Vince: "926."  
  
Mikey: "932."  
  
Gus: "916."  
  
Ashley A. "894."  
  
"Which means," Vince said thinking hard. "TJ, Spinelli, and Ashley A. are heading the same direction. Gretchen and Gus are heading the same way and Mikey and I are some what in the same direction."  
  
"Hey guys," Ashley said softly. "Uh, you can just call me 'Ashley'. I mean, I'm the only one here, unless Spinelli wants to be called 'Ashley' but I doubt it."  
  
"Yeah, you're right," Spinelli said.  
  
"Well, let's go friends. We don't want to be late," Mikey said. And as he said the word "friends", Ashley smiled, knowing that she might actually be accepted.  
  
  
  
September 10  
  
Dear Journal-  
  
Today was great! First day of high school. It was phenomenal. The weird part was that Ashley was nice to us. She was acting like our friend. I guess in a way it's kind of nice. She really changed though. In a way, all of us have changed. TJ still has his red baseball cap, cargo pants, a white shirt and a dark blue blouse. Slight change there. Vince's hair is shorter and he wears jeans and a blue jersey now that says 'LeSalle' on it. It was probably special made. And Mikey wore the same clothes he's worn since 4th grade-just different sizes. Me, I'm like Mikey, the exact same.  
  
-Gus Griswold  
  
  
  
1 September 10  
  
Diary:  
  
Today was great. We acquired a new friend (Ashley Armbrewster). She's actually really great. Nothing has really changed about her though. Her blonde hair is now a little bit darker, more like dirty blonde now. She wore a plain red spaghetti strap tank top and a black mini skirt. Her platform shoes were black, just like in middle school. And she is incredibly rich. Just like middle school. So you see, nothing really changed. My hair is now tied in a ponytail. The pigtail thing got old. I wear glasses still but my outfit is different. I wear a long ankle length skirt that is dark blue and a white blouse. Elegant, yet casual. I'd say the one who changed the most is Ashley Spinelli. Spinelli's hair is layered and is highlighted a noticeable red. She wears it down. She's also, as her parents would put it "developing". She wears tight fitting jeans now and a tight shirt that says ROCK STAR on it. Instead of boots, she wears Vans, an expensive, cool type of tennis shoes. And, dare I say it, but is she wearing make-up???  
  
-Gretchen Grundler  
  
  
  
September 10  
  
Dearest Journal,  
  
Aah, the first day of school I always find refreshing. Everything was perfect. Our new friend Ashley is quite a pleasure to be around. Without her fellow Ashleys she is very different. Nice even, which is a good trait. I have a lot of homework now but its good for the soul. Everyone is very friendly and I joined the Poetry for the Soul Club. It's very refreshing to find people who appreciate your gift. I'm thinking about Choral too. Well, must do my homework now. Au reviore.  
  
-Mikey Blomberg  
  
  
  
TJ awoke the next day. He looked at his clock. 5 a.m. Too early. He got out of bed and decided to do something if he was awake this early. He felt around the dark and found the light switch. He turned it on and looked around his room. His desk was a mess. He walked over to it and saw there was a blank notebook there. On it was a Post-It© note:  
  
TJ-Here's a spiral notebook for you. Who knows?  
  
You might find something to write in here. Just  
  
be creative, okay? You're a high school student  
  
now. You'll have a lot of things to write about.  
  
See ya. -Becky  
  
TJ looked at the notebook. He knew all of his friends kept a diary/journal. Maybe he could too. He opened up the notebook and started writing.  
  
  
  
September 11  
  
Journal,  
  
Hey, um, okay. I never had a journal before, but I guess this is a start. First day of school was yesterday. It was pretty cool. Ashley A.-er, Ashley, was really nice. I'm kind of glad she's hanging out with us. Nothing's really wrong anyway. Spinelli and I were a couple in middle school but she barely took notice of it yesterday. Does she want to break up or something? I don't know. I'll have to talk to her. It's just kind of weird that she didn't really say anything to me. My teachers are great. And I'm thinking about joining the football team. Well, I'd better start getting ready for school now. C ya.  
  
-TJ Detweiler  
  
  
  
Ashley picked the 6 friends up again and she did so every day. She was really starting to like hanging out with TJ and the gang. She felt closer to them all. Ashley had joined the Yearbook Committee and was a cheerleader. She especially liked walking with Spinelli to homeroom sometimes because they got to talk and became good friends.  
  
Spinelli was loving every minute of high school. She and TJ were still a couple. Whew, a scare there for a second! She was in Choral and was surprisingly a good singer. According to the conductor, she had "potential". The most amazing part of her though, was that she and Ashley were now almost best friends.  
  
Gus and Gretchen were a couple. Gus was really happy. He had joined the school newspaper The Eagle and he was a really good writer. Gretchen was head of the Science Club already and was a member of the Math Club.  
  
Mikey was in Choral and was a star singer. He was in the Poetry for the Soul club too. He didn't have a girlfriend and wasn't looking for one. He occasionally wrote for The Eagle writing poetry sections. He also wrote an advice column called Mikey's Muse.  
  
Vince was also enjoying high school like you wouldn't believe. He was on the football team, basketball team, and the softball team. He also was a pretty good student. Talk about popular. Speaking of popular.  
  
TJ was incredibly popular. He was also on the football team and the softball team. He and Spinelli were the number one couple too. Life was really great for these 7 but all it took was a new guy and one party to wreck their perfect lives.  
  
  
  
February 16  
  
Okay, I know that usually I don't go goo-goo ga-ga over some guy, but who could blame me now? The cutest guy came to Thaddeus T. yesterday. He's a junior and his name is David Shield. His golden hair is totally dreamy and his British accent is so cute! Oh my gosh, I sound like Ashley now. Well, like I said, I can't help it! David is in Choral. Maybe he'll notice my voice. I'm turning out to be a good singer. Sigh.  
  
  
  
-Ashley Spinelli  
  
  
  
"Excuse me, Spinelli, is it?"  
  
Spinelli turned around and saw it was David Shield, her dream boy.well, next to TJ. She smiled. "Yes?"  
  
"Uh, I was wondering, maybe you and your friends could come to a party this weekend. It's at my house," David said smiling his perfect smile.  
  
"Oh, sure!" Spinelli managed to say.  
  
"Alright then," he said. "Here are the directions. Bye now."  
  
"Bye," Spinelli said as she walked away. She ran to her locker and saw Ashley. "Ashley!" she called.  
  
Ashley turned around and saw the excited look on Spinelli's face. "What? You look like you just got a date with David Shield."  
  
"In a way, I kind of did!"  
  
"Really?!?!" Ashley said, her eyes wide.  
  
"David asked me and all of my friends to go to his party Saturday night!"  
  
"Yes!" Ashley cheered. "Come on, let's tell everyone else!"  
  
  
  
February 18  
  
Hey Journal,  
  
This is sweet. David Shield invited Teej, Spin, Gretch, Gus, Mikey, Ash, and me to his cool party. And we're only freshmen! Man, this is great. Becky's going to but we've given up getting a ride from her and we take Ashley's limo now. Everything is going great, right? Nothing bad is gonna happen.  
  
-Vince LeSalle  
  
  
  
"Spinelli, Ashley, hey." It was David.  
  
"Hey David," they both replied. "Great party," Ashley gushed.  
  
"Try some of the punch, it's to die for," David said. Spinelli looked at him. Something about him was different.  
  
"Uh, are you okay?" she asked. "You don't look very."  
  
"I'm fine, I'm fine," David replied airily.  
  
"Come on Spin, let's just get something to drink," Ashley said grabbing Spinelli's arm.  
  
They grabbed some punch and started drinking.  
  
"We better, hic, get home," Ashley said, clearly drunk.  
  
"You're, hic, right," Spinelli said, also drunk too. "Where's the limo?"  
  
"Hic, it's right over there, but David said, hic, he would give us a ride, hic."  
  
"Ready?" David asked coming over.  
  
1.1 A/N: If you can't tell already, David's drunk. Now, they're in the car. Uh-oh.  
  
Ashley and Spinelli were okay now. Spinelli had just woken up and realized they were in a car-going 70 miles. "David!" she screamed. Ashley awoke and screamed.  
  
"He's drunk. He doesn't know what he's doing!" Ashley yelled.  
  
"Well, what're we doing getting into this car then!?" Spinelli yelled back.  
  
"I'll give you 3 guesses and the first 2 don't count," Ashley replied.  
  
"We were drunk?!?" Spinelli gasped. She looked at David and saw he was passed out at the wheel and they were heading straight towards a telephone pole.  
  
  
  
February 19  
  
Diary:  
  
Spinelli's in the hospital. She was in a car accident after yesterday's party. Drunk driving was what killed one person in the car. When I first found this out I was afraid. What if Spinelli was dead? What if Ashley was dead? Ashley has a broken arm but Spinelli has a huge gash in her forehead. David Shield is dead. Quarterback for the football team and center for the basketball team. And now, he's gone. I have to go to the hospital now. I still can't believe it.  
  
-Gretchen Grundler  
  
  
  
"Ashley?" Gretchen asked as she walked into the Spinelli's hospital room. Ashley was sitting next to Spinelli looking extremely worried.  
  
"Oh Gretch," Ashley said. She ran over to her and hugged her. "Spinelli's going to be okay, she's just resting."  
  
"Let's go outside," Gretchen suggested. Ashley nodded.  
  
Outside, TJ, Vince, Gus, and Mikey were waiting. Ashley expected to see looks of relief plastered on their faces but instead they looked.confused. Angry even.  
  
"Hey guys. What's wrong?" she asked.  
  
"Ashley, you need to tell us what happened exactly," Gretchen said seriously.  
  
"Well, we got drunk, David passed out, and we, I don't know, crashed." She looked around and saw their expressions unchanged. "What?"  
  
"David was a top student. This is unlike him," Gretchen said.  
  
"He was the best player on the sport's teams," TJ said. "Why throw his life away like this?"  
  
"And Spinelli? Act like this?" Vince asked.  
  
"Pretty unlikely," Gus said thoughtfully.  
  
"Unless someone else was involved in, maybe, encouraging her to drink?" Mikey asked, eyes narrowing.  
  
Ashley knew what they were getting at. "Oh no, no, no, no, no. You don't think this is my fault, do you?"  
  
"At this point," TJ said shaking his head. "Who knows what to think."  
  
  
  
February 21  
  
Dear Diary,  
  
They think it was me. They think it's my fault David's dead and Spinelli got hurt. No one at school's really talking to me. I guess rumor has it I'm the bad person. That I'm back to my "old, devious ways". Why? Spinelli knows the truth, but she's still in the hospital. She lost a lot of blood. Oh, I hope she's okay. Why is this happening to me? I didn't want anyone to get hurt. I just wanted friends. It's not even my fault. I just.I just wanted to be accepted, I guess. Too late.  
  
-Ashley Armbrewster  
  
  
  
"Oh my gosh, there she is." "Can you believe it?" "What went wrong?" These phrases were whispered over and over as Ashley walked down the hall to her locker. She was used to being stared at, but not like this. Oh Lord, was she being blamed for everything? Ashley walked up to TJ.  
  
"Hey Teej," she said cheerfully.  
  
He looked at her with no expression. "Hello."  
  
"TJ, please don't make this hard. You know it wasn't my fault," Ashley pleaded.  
  
TJ slammed his locker and looked at her, "Damn it Ashley!" he yelled. "Nobody knows what happened. And you're the only one who remembers. Why don't you just end this act and tell everyone the truth?"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"People heard you asking David for a ride."  
  
"What? He offered and we accepted."  
  
"No, you accepted."  
  
"Oh, and it's my fault because he offered? What is your problem?"  
  
"You know what, forget it, okay? I don't want to talk about it," TJ said frustrated. He looked at Ashley and shook his head. Ashley watched as he walked away. If everyone had the same opinion, who knew what would happen.  
  
  
  
February 21  
  
Journal,  
  
I blew up at Ashley today. I'm not saying I didn't mean to, it's just, I can't explain. She says one thing but people who heard things contradict. I don't know who to believe. Spinelli's my girlfriend. David was my friend. Sure, Ashley's my friend too, but I don't know now. I mean, she did pretty mean stuff before. Are people right about here? Has she not changed? I'm really confused.  
  
-TJ Detweiler  
  
  
  
FAST FORWARD TO SENIOR YEAR FOR THE GANG.  
  
"Man, our last day of high school. It feels like only yesterday we were just starting," Vince said.  
  
"Yeah, I know," Spinelli said shaking her head. "What feels different?"  
  
"We've made friends and lost friends," TJ said.  
  
"Teej, forget about the freshman thing. That was nearly 4 years ago," Spinelli said. "Ashley's moved on to another school. Just forget about it."  
  
"No, I won't forget about it," TJ said stubbornly. "I can't."  
  
"TJ, Spinelli has cleared it up that Ashley did nothing wrong," Mikey pointed out.  
  
"Yeah, if we can forget it, why can't you?" Gus asked.  
  
"TJ, you never apologized to Ashley anyway," Gretchen said softly.  
  
"Apologize? Apologize?! For what?" TJ yelled.  
  
"Here's your chance TJ. And don't ask 'for what?' You know what."  
  
TJ turned and saw Ashley Armbrewster walking down the hallway. He hadn't seen her for ages. She hadn't changed much. She left in freshman year because of David's death. And now she had some nerve walking back into Thaddeus T.  
  
"Hi guys," Ashley said awkwardly. "Just visiting you. I-I missed you." Spinelli ran over to Ashley and hugged her. Everyone did the same, except for TJ. He just stood there looking at her. "Oh come on TJ," Ashley said. "You're still blaming me aren't you? Something that happened so long ago. Spinelli's fine. What is the matter with you?"  
  
"I have to go now. I'll see you guys tonight at our graduation," TJ said. He walked off.  
  
"Ignore him," Gus said.  
  
"He doesn't know what he's saying. He thinks that you're still to blame. He holds grudges if you can't tell," Mikey explained.  
  
  
  
June 17  
  
Well, tonight's our graduation. We'll be heading off to college next year. I cannot believe it. TJ still is still mad at Ashley. He'll have to realize soon that what I'm saying is true. Sigh, he's so stubborn. I better get ready now. I have to call TJ too. Please make him understand.  
  
-Ashley Spinelli  
  
  
  
"Congratulations guys," Ashley said running over to them after the ceremony. "You guys are going off to college."  
  
"What about you?" Vince asked.  
  
"Me? I'm going to put off college for a bit and go to some work in China. It's for the best, right?" Ashley looked around. "Where's TJ?"  
  
"Right here." Ashley turned around. TJ was standing there. "Ashley, I'm sorry. I should have listened before. Spinelli told me the whole story. I guess if I had paid more attention then you none of this would have happened."  
  
"None of what?"  
  
"You leaving Thaddeus T. Everyone was making it hard for you. Especially me. I'm really sorry."  
  
Ashley smiled and hugged him. "Forgiven." 


End file.
